


One Hundred Years

by orphan_account



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Aubrey has a motorcycle i dont make the rules, Fluff, Multi, Not Beta Read, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-17
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 02:44:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17820287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Modern AU snippets featuring all your favorite The Adventure Zone characters!





	One Hundred Years

The desk lamp switches on again in the other room and Lup groans, throwing her hands up, and narrowly missing a wall or something that would've hurt a lot, but not nearly as much as her heart is currently hurting for Barold J. Bluejeans.

Or herself, maybe. But she's come to terms with the fact that she isn't going to get any sleep tonight- _especially with that light on!_  

"Barold!" she yells, dragging out that A as far as it will go. "You're not going to fail, just go to sleep."

The only response is the sound of some papers shuffling, and she yells his name again. The one they don't talk about, because somehow it's even worse than 'Barry Bluejeans'.

There's still no answer though, and Lup lays there as long as she is possibly able to before she resolves to confront the worst roommate and best friend ever, trunking as she shambles down the hallway. 

He's sitting in the otherwise dark living-space, hunched over the coffee table at an awkward angle. She leans against the doorway, but he doesn't look up from the ridiculously large stack of papers.

 "You can't possibly be worried about failing this. You're like...the most qualified person for this, ever."

 Barry startles, looking up quickly enough that his glasses fall to the table. "Oh, Lup." He rubs his tired eyes and when he looks back up at her, she can't help but feel that he looks like a kicked puppy, and she hates that! "Sorry, did I wake you up?" I

She likes his kind of sleepy voice, which is even more gravelly than it usually is. She just doesn't like that him stressing himself out is what's causing it, this time.

He deserves a lot better than to feel like a kicked puppy, that's for sure. And yeah, he woke her up, about three hours ago, the first time he'd decided to get up, turn on the lamp they'd set up on the coffee table, before turning it off and pacing the hall for at least fifteen minutes.

But she isn't going to tell him that. That would only make things worse for poor, stressed Barry. "Nah, I wasn't asleep either. But really, you've been preparing for this for a literal year and a half. We both have. Are you really worried?"

He rubs at his eyes again and then spares a glance at the papers. "I mean...I mean yeah, a little bit. I know that I'm ready, it's mostly the physical part. But uh...can't really do any more preparing for that part at this point, can i?"

Lup very clearly visualizes him doing pushups while she sits on his back, but she shakes her head. "Nah, prob'ly not. No need to worry, though. Really. I mean, if they'll hire a gnome, I don't see why they won't hire you. I mean, you're stronger than a gnome, right? I sure hope you are." He is. Surprisingly strong, that Barry.

"Ha. Really funny, Lup," His tone is awful dry, but he's looking like he feels a little better. " I..I guess I shouldn't stress about it."

And then he sort of goes quiet and contemplative again, and holding back a yawn, she reaches for his glasses, and carefully puts them back where they usually sit. "Nah, you shouldn't but here we are, aren't we? So what can I do? "

Barry sort of shrugs. "No, it's fine. You've already don't plenty, Lup and I've kept you up and-"

"None of that, Barold! I offered, and I don't offer shit unless I mean it."

_She'd give him anything._

He sits quiet again and for a moment she thinks she's lost him again, which isn't great since tomorrow's actually super important for both of them and he's got to be on top of his game, and so does she. 

Worrying about him is doing her no favors, but she couldn't stop even if she'd wanted to.

"Could you...could you stay? You being around...helps. I mean just..."

He doesn't have to even say anymore. She grabs his hand and in less than a blink they're in his room, and she's carefully covering him in his blankets before following, a distance apart that should be uncomfortably close, but instead feels miles away. 

They've been doing this for they were just little kids, her, and Barry, and Taako, but this is different, really. She'd really like to kiss him. Just a little, maybe and then go to sleep.

They aren't  _there_ , and she knows that. And she...she's not sure she's quite to the point where she doesn't feel this nervous with just  _herself_ but that's alright. He's the one to grab her hand, quickly and still shaking a little, but it makes her heart attempt a backflip in her chest.

She sleeps really good. Like, amazingly good. too

Because it isn't like this hasn't happened before but today is just that extra little bit of great she wasn't expecting because Wow, she gets to wake up next to Barold Fuckin' Blue jeans and how great is that?

And then Taako calls in the morning while she's making pancakes and Barry puts him on speakerphone and he's got some long, sort of our-of-character pep talk about how proud of them he is and she might get a little teary but not as teary as Barry or Taako do. 

Which is great, because they're both ugly criers but so is she, and something tells her there test scores wouldn't matter if they walked into the IPRE sobbing. 

They're gonna do great, and even if she doesn't, she just  _knows_  that Barry will and she's super, super proud too. 

And if they don't get in they've still got each other and wow, that thought always makes her so, so happy. She's got her brother, who was all she'd ever needed for a long, long time but now she doesn't think she could live without sweet, sweet Barry, either.

They're her family, and that's all Lup has ever wanted or needed. 

**Author's Note:**

> Next time: Aubrey meets her new neighbor, whom is very, very cute.


End file.
